Source(s)

Description:
The amount of waste on the move is increasing rapidly. Reports to the Basel Convention on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal suggest that between 1993 and 2001 the amount of waste crisscrossing the globe increased from 2 million tonnes to more than 8.5 million tonnes. What is this material that is being traded between countries, where is it from and where is it going? Unfortunately data on waste movements are incomplete – not all countries report waste movements to the Basel Convention. However, we do know that the movement of waste is big business.

Annual world nuclear reactor construction / Spent fuel generationBoth the volume and the level of radioactivity have to be considered – a large volume of waste with a low-level of radioactivity presents less danger than a smaller amount of
waste with a high-level of radioactivity. Fo...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Contribution of various waste management systems to greenhouse gas emissions, 2002The disposal and treatment of waste can produce emissions of several greenhouse gases (GHGs), which contribute to global climate change. The most significant GHG gas produced from waste is methane. It is released during ...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Existing radioactive waste disposal and proposal alternatives for storageRadioactive waste presents a unique problem, where it has to be handled with care to prevent radiation exposure for people, wildlife and contamination. Products from nuclear activities can be reprocessed to a certain deg...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Human Development Index (HDI) in 2002Human development is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. It is about creating an environment in which people can develop their full potential and lead productive, creative lives in accord with thei...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Import waste as reported by Germany, in tonnes, 2001In 2000 Germany reported sending 317 528 tonnes of waste to 14 countries. All countries appeared to receive a broad combination of hazardous waste apart from China, which received nearly 50 tonnes of household waste. Dur...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Municipal solid waste composition: for 7 OECD countries and 7 Asian citiesIn most countries in the world, organic materials and paper are the main contributors to municipal waste. In developing countries, large cities generate most of the municipal waste. Data are rarely available for rural ar...

By Philippe Rekacewicz, UNEP/GRID-Arendal

Total waste generation in selected OECD countries in mid-1990sThe Basel Convention has estimated the amount of hazardous and other waste generated for 2000 and 2001 at 318 and 338 millions tonnes respectively. However these figures are based on reports from only a third of the coun...